Chapter 144
Ellie POV
The drive to Dominic’s parents’ mansion is quiet.
Not peaceful quiet.
The kind of quiet that sits between two people when there are too many things neither of them knows how to say.
Sarah had left me with Dominic.
Not because she wanted to.
Because I begged her to.
And honestly…
I needed her to.
Because somehow, despite everything that had happened between us, Dominic was still the only person who made me feel like myself.
The car moves through the streets, but neither of us speaks.
Dominic stares out the window, his jaw tight.
He doesn’t ask questions.
I’m grateful for that.
I don’t know if I could explain everything right now without falling apart.
But he’s distant.
Too distant.
So I do the only thing I know how to do.
I bother him.
I lightly poke his arm.
He turns toward me.
“What?”
I gesture toward the grocery bags sitting beside him.
“What did you get from the market?”
For a moment, he just looks at the bags.
Like he forgot they existed.
“Oh.”
He reaches down and glances inside.
“Uh… some jerky.”
My eyebrows lift.
“Just meat?”
He pauses.
Then, slowly nods.
I narrow my eyes.
“Right.”
I lean closer.
“Because I definitely don’t see any pudding in there.”
A tired sigh escapes him.
He folds his arms and looks back out the window.
“It was on sale.”
I grin.
“Hehe.”
I shake my head.
“Okay, tough guy.”
For a second, the tension in the car eases.
Then Dominic looks at me.
“You’re way too smiley.”
I blink.
“What?”
“You’re smiling more than you have in weeks.”
His eyes narrow slightly.
“I thought this was an emergency.”
I nod.
“It is.”
My smile fades a little.
“But…”
I look down at my hands.
“I only feel like myself around you.”
The words surprise even me.
I continue before I can overthink them.
“And teasing you is easier than thinking about the conversation we’re about to have.”
The moment the words leave my mouth, Dominic stiffens.
His expression shifts.
“Yeah.”
His voice is quiet.
“No kidding.”
By the time we pull up to the mansion, my stomach is already twisting.
Not from sickness.
From everything waiting inside.
Dominic gets out first and helps me out of the car.
His hand is steady.
Careful.
Like he’s afraid I’ll break.
He guides me through the massive entrance.
Marble floors.
High ceilings.
Expensive decorations.
Everything about this place screams power.
And somehow, it feels like I’m walking back into a world I swore I was done with.
A world I rejected.
A world I blamed.
And now I’m here.
Asking for help.
The guilt settles heavily in my chest.
Maybe I should have stayed quiet.
Maybe I shouldn’t have said all those things at the gala.
Maybe I should have realized that burning every bridge meant I wouldn’t have anywhere left to go.
Dominic slows as we approach his father’s office.
It’s barely noticeable.
Just a tiny hesitation.
A pause.
But I catch it.
“What’s wrong?”
My voice comes out tighter than I intended.
He doesn’t look at me.
“Nothing.”
The answer is immediate.
Too immediate.
A lie.
We both know it.
But he still raises his hand and knocks.
A moment later—
“Come in.”
His father’s voice carries through the door.
Dominic opens it.
The office smells exactly how I expected.
Leather.
Old books.
Power.
The kind of room where decisions are made, and people’s lives change without them ever knowing.
Dominic’s father looks up from behind his desk.
And then he sees us.
Together.
A smile appears on his face.
An actual smile.
I wasn’t expecting that.
Not even close.
“Well.”
His eyes move between us.
“This is unexpected.”
His smile grows slightly.
“You two together.”
A pause.
“This is promising.”
“It's business.”
Dominic’s response is immediate.
Too quick.
His father’s smile fades.
“Ellie asked to see you.”
The warmth disappears from his father’s expression.
His posture straightens.
The shift is subtle.
But I feel it.
The businessman returns.
“If Ellie has business with me…”
His voice becomes colder.
“…then it should be discussed privately.”
My chest tightens.
Before I can say anything—
“No.”
Dominic’s voice cuts through the room.
Firm.
His father looks at him.
“I’m not leaving.”
The silence that follows is heavy.
A challenge.
Father and son stare at each other.
And for the first time, I realize something.
Dominic isn’t standing beside me because he has to.
He’s choosing to.